No grocery stores or drugstores, high prices, and expensive parking are huge drawbacks to the Kendall Square area, but Third Square is great if you're willing to deal with all of that and are looking for somewhere in East Cambridge. This Equity property is nicely synced up with their other properties, making it easy to move between them (I took advantage of leaving a lease early and moving into this property when I got a new job), and the staff and concierge are fantastic. Maintenance has been very responsive (within a day) for any apartment issues (so far, a defective smoke detector and broken garbage disposal on move-in) and the appliances are modern and in good shape. The online portal makes it very easy to submit service requests, see delivery notifications, and pay bills. The gym is a major plus.

Kendall Square is PRICY, and is sorely lacking in grocery/convenience stores. That being said, for the area (and knowing the area up front), I've loved my experience at Third Square. Convenient to the Red Line (and not far from Lechmere also), and while parking is expensive there are zipcar options in the garage. The management is fantastic, concierge staff is great (and handle deliveries), and maintenance is responsive and helpful. Appliances are modern and work well. There are a fair number of social events, and the management bring in companies with some regularity for trials and demonstrations for things like grocery delivery services, dry cleaning, etc. Although I haven't taken advantage of any of these services yet, this is much appreciated. The gym is perfectly fine for my needs and never ridiculously overcrowded.

Third Square offers a pleasant and spacious place to rent. The staff is very welcoming and helpful, and our experiences requesting help from maintenance have been ideal. The 4 features, including gym, tv room, study room, and socializing room, are great added features.

The Third Square Apartment complex is a super nice apartment and very attentive concierge. The underground parking is especially useful in the Winter months. Rent is trough the roof and increases dramatically every year. But you get what you pay for.

The apartment building is well managed and much nicer than whats available in Allston/Brighton, but its also a lot more expensive and the commute to BU's campus is pretty long

I only lived in Third Square for six months (moved for school), but I had a pretty good experience. The summer was particularly great because I was able to make use of the barbecue grills in the courtyard. It was great for hosting small get togethers and it seemed like most residents made frequent use of the courtyard. There are also two really large resident lounges that were great for watching sporting events. We were even able to use one of the spaces to host dance practices. Also, there are two really great apartment gyms that never get too crowded. The units are also really nice and being so close to the Kendall Square T is a huge plus.
I only had a couple of gripes. 1) They charge a lockout fee if you happen to lock yourself out of your apartment. It’s pretty minor, but kind of ridiculous. The point of living in a doorman building is they help you out with things like that. 2) While Kendall Square is being rapidly developed it’s still pretty sparse in terms of restaurants and groceries. It’s a long walk to the closest Whole Foods or Shaws, and a lot of the nearby restaurants are pricey. That being said, there is a nearby Chipotle that is a lifesaver.